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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  22. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. game — a match
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. saw — the tool
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. wind — moving air
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. scale — in music
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. scale — size or range
  15. staff — employees
  16. staff — a stick
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. leaves — lets stay
  20. fork — in a road
  21. leaves — of a tree
  22. staff — employees
  23. saw — the tool
  24. game — wild animals

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com